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The Huron Expositor, 1995-03-15, Page 71Farm Progress '95' -Papa 13A P • -4f) •� 1•� I��f f ( f j%�� Vic' • .� "� �1 Si f S !? . '4' � ,' f ' 7, , �i 3 �J •4i��i��i4i �i��i4i 4,,• i4i4i4i4i�ii�ii�i�ii�ii�iU4i4fii�ii�i '1.0•./././././././.1.0 iiisii4i4��i�4i�ii4i4i4fifi'�ii�ii 160., ��fi��4 �� 1.• 9...4 0i 4 4o 4,11 6i 4.91 4 00 .1.140 i."I°0110...4.4.40 t i 04.4..4.4.4.4.4.40. • i iA4 �i 4#4�41444��• •.. 0,9•.. et. ��i�4��4��4��4��4��4��4��4��4��4��4��4��4��4��4��4��4��4��4��4��4�Ji��4��4��4��4��i�4��4��4��4��4��4��4.4474. 4fe Foodgrains program is about people helping people •from page 10A wheat or soybeans for those less fortunate than ourselves throughout the globe somehow seems far more personally satisfying than simply giving money. "People helping people," is how another observer, Randy Freiter, a manager at the Seaforth Co-op, summed up the day's effort. Support for the Foodgrains Bank extends beyond farmers. Although the bank doesn't actively canvas for donations, Huron County churches raised more than $7,600 last year for the Foodgrains project. The Seaforth Foodgrains commit- tee praises the charity because it feels food gets to the people who really need it. The Foodgrains Bank goes through churches with es- tablished aid experience, not governments. For the past three years area people have paid their own way on African study tours to see their Foodgrains donations in action. "I got a good taste of what our donations are doing and I was thoroughly impressed," said Monkton-area farmer John Tol- lenaar, upon his return from one such study tour. Members of' the Seaforth commit- tee also praise the Foodgrains Bank for its low administration costs of less than three per cent, and for the nature of its overseas applications, some food -for -work and refugee relief projects. "It isn't for the weak -stomached," commented one Ontario woman after watching where local charity ends up after retuming from last year's three-week Foodgrains study tour in Ethiopia, Eritrea and Kenya. Members of the group were unanimously positive upon its return. One tour member said his understanding of food aid changed because of the trip. "I have become aware of 'food -for -work' program- mes and how this process is used to stimulate local initiatives," said Roger Nelson, a farmer from Bal- timore, Ontario. "I realize there are occasions when necessity dictates that food be given out. However, I feel that when food is used to encourage people to help themselves it represents a much better application of aid." New Brunswick civil servant Ken Robinson observed: "Recipients of food are not just looking for a hand-out. I detected • real signs of ownership in the projects we visited, and a desire for them to continue once food -for - work is terminated." "Driving through the dust in Dire Dawa, choking dust in your throat - then suddenly we come across this oasis where everything is green because they've tapped a spring - it's a very fertile land with just a bit of water," he commented upon returning from Ethiopia. "I was also overwhelmed at times by the desperate needs which can only be met to a small degree, "Robinson added. "The daily strug- gle by the women to find water, which is often contaminated, was brought home most dramatically by the sight of a woman waiting by a t ighway under construction, hoping that the water truck used to dampen down the dust on the road would have some left over for them "The memories won't fade for a long time." Last spring the Foodgrains Bank committed $1.25 -million food response to the Rwandan tragedy, where refugees flowed into neigh- boring Uganda, Zaire, Burundi and Zaire to escape starvation, mass murder and tribal genocide, or "ethnic cleansing" as it is termed elsewhere in today's troubled world. The beans harvested in the Seaforth project last October were transferred to the Canadian Foodgrains Bank storage account locally, to be exchanged for foods suitable for Third World relief, for instance corn or wheat. The Seaforth project practises crop rotation and in 1993 grew COM. The 12 partner agencies in the Foodgrains Bank represent 10,700 church congregations across Canada. The collaboration involves Adventist, Baptist, Christian Reformed, Christian and Missionary Alliance, Lutheran, Mennonite, Nazarene, Pentecostal, Presbyterian, United Church and ,World relief partners. Last fall's invasion of combines outside of Seaforth was : aptured by a film crew from Illinois who used it in a Case IH promotional video. It also impressed and agricultural exchange student from New Zealand, Debbie Ferguson, there staying on the farm of Ken and Marina Scott at RR 2 Seaforth. "All of a sudden there were com- bines everywhere!," she recalls. "1 think it is really amazing for a community to pull together on something like this." ENSALL ISTRICT O -OPERATIVE 6,,,.mriorroTEXAco at A '95 SPRING LUBE SALE - MARCH 8 APRIL TEXACO Quality Lubricants Quality For The Long Run Lubricants formulated for every automotive, commercial and agricultural needs, plus our TEXCHEK rapid oil analysis to identify engine and equipment problems. Hydraulic Fluids &Motor Oil SAVE 25cto 35`/litre 1 Up to 300 litres - 25C OFF Over 300 litres - 35C OFF BONUS OFFER FREE! • TEXACO WORK GLOVES with the purchase of over 50 litres. 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